POWER TO THE PEOPLE

POWER TO THE PEOPLE neon is based on the picket sign held by Marsha P. Johnson in a 1970 photograph by Diana Davies. In the photo, Johnson stands with her sign outside of NYU’s Bellevue Hospital to protest the hospital's inhumane treatment of gay, transgender and homeless people. 

Marsha P Johnson (August 24, 1945 – July 6, 1992), was a performer, activist, and founding member of the Gay Liberation Front, and co-founded Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries (S.T.A.R.) with Sylvia Rivera. STAR focused on the needs of homeless transgender sex workers – providing shelter, food and legal support. STAR also worked to combat discrimination within the gay community. 

The neon was originally created to mark the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Uprising (1969/2019) and to recognize Marsha P. Johnson’s activism at and beyond Stonewall. POWER TO THE PEOPLE is available (edition of 10) to benefit Queer|Art and Art for Black Lives - for more info or purchase visit Q|A here.

"History isn't something you look back at and say it was inevitable, it happens because people make decisions that are sometimes very impulsive and of the moment, but those moments are cumulative realities." - Marsh P Johnson

I’M A GAY BALLOON

I’M A GAY BALLOON is a reproduction based on a photograph by George Dudley (1951–1993) taken during Pride March ‘79, NYC. Dudley was a prolific artist and photographer who documented queer events, including decades of Pride Marches and community portraits. These latex balloons were recreated for the exhibition, Y’all Better Quiet Down at the Leslie-Lohman Museum and The LGBTQ Center – and distributed for Pride March, NYC. Dudley’s archive is housed at the Leslie-Lohman Museum. View more of his work here.

OUT OF DARKNESS IS BORN THE LIGHT

OUT OF THE DARKNESS IS BORN THE LIGHT is an edition of printed flag banners, silk screened with reflective ink, that illuminates when hit with bright light or a camera flash, revealing the Catherine of Siena quote “Out of Darkness is Born the Light.”

Produced in 2018, during the Trump presidency, the message serves as an antidote to the dark rhetoric of the 45th administration and a news cycle of hateful policies, racist travel bands, police violence, mass shooting, and global terrorist attacks – it is a reminder to hold on to hope even during the darkest of times. Commissioned by Lite Brite Neon Studio, Edition of 40.

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that”. – Martin Luther King, Jr.

ONE DAY THIS KID…

ONE DAY THIS KID (Jamel Myles, 2008-2018) is based on Untitled (One Day, This Kid) by David Wojnarowicz. The original text-based photo collage by Wojnarowicz features a school portrait of the artist as a child surround by text that address homophobia, queer bashing, suicide and AIDS, in the voice of an adult reflecting on his childhood. In this re-adaptation, the text surrounding the portrait of Myles is cut short, as is his life - when he hangs himself after being bullied for coming out at school.

LOVE HAPPENED HERE (REMIXED)…

A selection of digital collages of text and images reflecting on art activism and HIV/AIDS – quilting together personal narratives with Visual AIDS artists projects, queer histories, and reinterpreted activist designs. Created for On Curating: What You Don’t Know about AIDS Could Fill A Museum. Edited by Theodore (ted) Kerr. Issue 42 / September 2019

Thank you to the artists whose works are include in this project: Nayland Blake, Jessica Whitbread, fierce pussy, Kay Rosen, Nancer LeMoins, Kia Labeija, Chloe Dzubilo, Carmine Santaniello, Joe Brainard, Zoe Leonard, Donald Moffett, Ben Cuevas, Michael Mitchell, Shan Kelley, Chris Johanson, Eric Hanson, Jayson Keeling, Tony Feher, Gran Fury, ACT UP, Peter Cramer and Jack Waters